


Comfort Zone

by CherryEmbly



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, BL, F/M, Fluff, Gay, M/M, One Piece - Freeform, Romance, Sanji x Zoro, Smut, Sweet, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Yaoi, ZoSan - Freeform, Zoro x Sanji - Freeform, sanzo - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-20
Updated: 2017-08-24
Packaged: 2018-12-17 21:57:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,203
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11860440
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CherryEmbly/pseuds/CherryEmbly
Summary: Zoro is slightly taken aback to discover the man he's been in love with since primary school, Sanji, is looking for another guy with which to relieve some stress. At first, Zoro isn't interested in just being a friends-with-benefits with the man he adores, but when he's propositioned with higher stakes, he finds that there's much more to gain from his time with Sanji than to lose.





	1. A Lurid Rumor

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoy this little ZoSan fluffy fic. They’ve been apart for so long in canonverse that I had to satiate my emptiness somehow! It will likely be fifteen or so chapters. :)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zoro hears a rumor that, whether or not it's true, he has no interest in it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Brand new ZoSan fic because they've been apart from one another in the manga/anime for W A Y too long and my little heart can hardly take it anymore. 
> 
> There will be smut at some point, because why not? 
> 
> Mostly it's fluffy goodness.

“Why are you crying?” We were just little kids back then. “Oh, no. You fell and broke your pencil?” He obviously wasn’t anything more than just a friendly guy. “Here. Take this one.” But when he set his hand on my head and flashed that smile that could cure cancer with his silly curly eyebrows and his intoxicating green eyes… “Don’t cry.” 

…I fell in love.

* * *

That kind kid grew up to generally detest guys, or rather, he was just crazy about women. Now, as hormone fueled almost adults (well I technically was already, he wouldn’t be for a couple months still), the closest I’d ever gotten to him was being peers through school.

We’d just broken for lunch and I was sitting alone again with nothing. This wasn’t abnormal. I didn’t really have a home, unless you consider the flurry of garages I sneak in and out of every night a home, and likewise had no money so it wasn’t like I could buy myself lunch. A friend of mine’s uncle let me sweep his restaurant for a few dollars now and then, but even his business was failing so he often couldn’t afford to pay me. 

He, on the other hand, was _the_ Vinsmoke Sanji, heir to VinCorp. He was filthy rich, a fact he flaunted as he always brought two or three lunches a day so he could chivalrously offer his spares to whichever women he was pining after. Today’s selection was Robin, the reserved, bookish girl who often kept to herself and had made it clear on more than one occasion that she did not care much for Sanji. Sanji called her his ‘Tsundere,’ and relentlessly hoped that the fact would become true, but it wasn’t likely. 

“Robin-chan!” Sanji skipped over to her side, his “only” bento in his hand, and unwrapped it grandly in front of her. “Today I’ve made sweet omelettes for you!” 

Robin looked up at him over her glasses, something that, on its own, made me incredibly jealous. “Sanji,” she began, “I’ve told you many times, I don’t need your lunch. I have one of my own.” 

“Yes, but this one was made with love.” Sanji knelt down on one knee to deliver this line. “Please accept it.” 

Robin returned her attention to her own lunch, whipping a flurry of her long black hair into Sanji’s face as she turned her head. “No.” 

Sanji still fell over dramatically, whining about how lucky he was to have gotten to talk with her and be touched by her hair, and he stayed behaving that way until he was dragged back to his corner of the classroom by his best friend, Luffy, the only guy he tolerated. 

In truth, I actually think there’s something incredibly stupid about Sanji. He treats women differently and he thinks it’s a good thing, but he treats them more like damsels in distress. The strongest person I know, and my closest friend, is a woman and let me tell you. Treat her like a helpless little girl and she’ll sock you in the face. And it’ll hurt. 

But as I watched him, he quickly reminded me why I just can’t get over him. He splashed his smile on as he chuckled, eyes shut and teeth bared; nothing is warmer in my life. When he smiles I feel at ease, like nothing in the world could go wrong. I forget about being homeless and parentless and everything is fine. 

In a heart pounding moment, Sanji’s laugh subsided and his eyes opened and landed straight in mine. I averted my gaze as my cheeks warmed. How stupid could I be? 

Of course, getting caught staring at him was probably at the less severe end of interactions I’ve had with Sanji. Apart from the sheer number of times I’ve been caught peeping on him while changing during P.E. or “accidentally” signed up for all the same clubs as him, back in the final year of our middle school days, I confessed to him.

* * *

We’d just finished our after school shift at the gardening club. Sanji joined so that he could grow herbs and spices (he loves cooking) and on paper I joined because my grandmother loved gardening before she died. I don’t know, maybe she did. Just because I never met her doesn’t mean she wasn’t some sweet old woman who liked to water her peonies on warm, sunny days. The real reason I joined was clear. Something about watching Sanji tending his plants with a serene look on his face, like he was truly at peace, and his blond hair fluttering in the wind; I should have had to pay for such a sight.

We were washing our hands and putting our gardening tools and gloves away when I bumped into him on actual accident and caused him to drop and break one of his pots. I felt horrible and began apologizing over and over. I couldn’t do anything about it. I couldn’t offer to replace the pot or the seeds as a poor teen with no parents and I couldn’t grow the herbs myself, I struggled enough with the couple of flowers I’d stolen from a peer of mine. 

Within seconds, I was overwhelmed and having a panic attack. 

“Hey, hey! Why all this for a silly pot?” Sanji asked me. He put his hands on my shoulders. “Breathe, Zoro. Just breathe.” He scoffed at me as I tried to catch my breath. “Seriously, don’t make me feel bad for you, you dumb marimo.” 

‘Marimo’ was a nickname I’d been given as a result of my green hair. I was an outcast and Sanji was a popular guy, so in full view of his friends, he often puffed his chest out and bullied me. I mirrored the behavior. I was actually both taller and more muscular than him, and we ended up with a faux enemies kind of relationship. I used it to my advantage when I got caught doing things I wasn’t supposed to. When it was just he and I and there was no one to save face around, he could be gentler and so would I. But in full view of the garden club’s members, he had to both be the adversary he’d always been (to impress the women), but he probably also did feel bad that I was making such a fuss over something as stupid as a shattered clay pot. 

“I don’t care about you,” I barked, yanking away from him. “The school’s gonna make me pay for that.” 

Sanji knicked his head to one side. “Is that what you’re worried about? If it’s that big a deal, I’ll just pay for it.” 

I stormed away; I was embarrassed. I’d ruined one of Sanji’s plants and showed more venerability than I’d like to more people than should ever see it. I’d planned to wait inside the tool shed until everyone had gone. If I didn’t think I’d get locked inside, I’d just sleep in there, but a teacher would eventually come with keys and if he didn’t see me, he’d definitely lock the shed until club activities the next day. So I was just going to wait until all the club members had officially gone and then sneak out. 

If that’s how it had worked out it would have been okay, but about an hour later, the tool shed door opened and Sanji was standing on the other side. 

“Zoro? What are you doing in here?” I didn’t respond. Neither the option of continuing to pretend to dislike Sanji, nor the option of opening up to him seemed like good ones, so I opted for silence. He let out a deep sigh. “Honestly. Are you still upset about the pot?” Again, nothing. He rolled his emerald eyes, or rather, eye as the other was hidden behind the bangs of his hair. “I’ve already paid for the pot, so don’t worry about it.” 

“It’s not that,” I huffed. “Just go away.” 

Sanji held up the keys to the shed and jingled them lightly. “I forgot to leave my spade, so sensei gave me the keys to lock up.” 

“Fine.” I stood up and attempted to walk by Sanji, but he moved so that his body blocked the door. “I’m trying to leave.” 

“It’s gonna bother the shit out of me if you don’t tell me why you’re all emo all of a sudden. You’re normally a quiet guy, but this is odd even for you.” I kept my eyes trained to the floor and said nothing. Sanji stomped his foot. “Come on! If it’s something I did. I can’t fix it until you say something.” 

“It’s nothing. At least nothing you did.” 

“But it’s something.” 

“I don’t want to talk about it.” 

“I know you don’t have any friends,” Sanji spat out. “Keeping things bottled up isn’t good and it’ll be troublesome if you melt down like that again. I looked like a really bad guy out there you know, but you were the one who broke the pot.” 

Then he did it. 

He started to laugh. The second I heard it, my heart shot up through my throat, and I couldn’t help but look up. And there it was. That pure, wonderful smile. The very same one that shined at me the first time we’d ever met. The one I fell in love with. 

“You bumped into me and I was so startled I just let go.” His laughing worsened. “Who does that? Why wouldn’t I hang on tighter? That would have been the logical thing to do. No. Me? I just--woomp!” Sanji re-enacted letting go of the pot and then laughed all over again. “Here I was thinking I’d just hit a wall or something and I turn around and you’re already half-dead!”

I smiled. I couldn’t help it. Sanji was so beautiful and his smile was so alluring. The twilight was an ideal backdrop for his joyous face and I was struck. I couldn’t move, hardly breathe, only smile with him. 

He looked up at me, catching his breath and his eyes widened. “Hey, you can smile. Bunch of the girls have a bet going that you never learned how.” He reached out then and poked my cheek. “People who don’t smile enough die young, you know. Don’t be so serious all the time.” 

The spot where his finger touched me scorched me and sent waves of fire throughout my body. I stood stone still while Sanji walked around me and hung his lifted spade back on the wall and then I felt his hands on my back, like who blazing cattle irons melting against my skin, as he pushed me the rest of the way out of the tool shed. I still hadn’t moved by the time he locked the door and started around me again, back towards the school. 

He looked back over his shoulder, shot me dead with that killer smile, and simply said, “You coming?” 

I don’t know why, but the only words I could muster were the only ones I never should have said. “I love you.” 

He turned to face me properly as the smile I loved so much evaporated from his face in an instant. 

“What?” 

“I love you.” 

He scowled at me and it felt like my heart was spider cracking like a window with too much pressure weighing on it. 

“Gross,” he hissed. “I’m not gay.” 

The cracks gave and my heart shattered as he turned and walked away.

* * *

“Zoro. Zoro!”

How I got to the shoe lockers at the end of the day was beyond me. If it hadn’t been for my friend calling my name, my daze might’ve continued until well into the night. 

“Kuina,” I murmured as I slipped my street shoes on. “Hey.” 

Kuina was my best friend. She had short black hair, dark gray, almost black eyes and never wore the female uniform. She thought it was demeaning that women had to wear skirts and shirts that intentionally draw attention to other female assets. Though the school did allow girls to wear pants as opposed to skirts if they chose, the regulated pants were still tighter than the males’ so Kuina never worse those either. She used to get flack for it, so she cut her hair and hoped that the passing teacher would just think she was a guy. Eventually, the teachers who did still notice stopped calling her out. The female teachers didn’t disagree and the male teachers were getting sick of being dragged into meetings and accused of being perverts, so now she was just that girl who more a male uniform. 

“Did you hear?” She asked. 

“Hear what?” I began to walk towards the door and Kuina followed closely behind. 

“Sanji,” my heart skipped at his name, “is looking for a fuck buddy.” 

I sighed. “What else is new, Kuina?” 

Kuina let out her melodic chuckle that always preceded tomfoolery. “What’s new,” she ran a bit ahead of me and hopped into my path with a devious smile painted on her face, “is he’s looking for a male fuck buddy.” 

Now she had my attention. 

“No,” I replied quickly. “He’s not gay.” 

Kuina leaned in and lowered her voice like a news reporter with the latest juicy tidbit. “Apparently, his dad gave him an ultimatum that if he doesn’t find a woman to marry by the time he turns 18, he’s going to leave the company to his older brother and cut him off. He only has a few months, so he has to be very careful about who he dates because he’s going to have to marry her. He can’t afford to just date around and sleep with his girlfriends, and he respects women too much to just use them for sex, so he hasn’t done it in a long time and is all pent up. He told Luffy that he’d fuck anything with a hole at this point.” 

I scoffed. Luffy was a great guy, but was known for running his mouth. “Luffy is the worst secret keeper.” 

Kuina knocked her hand against my head. “Hello? Isn’t it obvious? He told Luffy because he knew he’d blab to everyone. Namely me.” 

“Why would he care about you knowing that?” I asked. 

“Ugh!” Kuina threw her head back dramatically. “You’re such a meathead!” She looked back at me and put her hands on my shoulders. “Maybe, because I’m your best friend.” 

I’d be lying if I said my heart ding beat particularly hard at the thought, but “No. He isn’t looking to be fuck buddies with me.” I walked around Kuina and continued down the cobblestone path towards the front gate of the school. “And even if he was. I wouldn’t do that to myself. He’d be disgusted with that guy and I’m trying to get over him, that’d only make things worse.” 

“You’ve wanted to be with Sanji since you were little kids,” Kuina said. “You’re always saying, ‘As soon as we graduate, I’m never looking back. I won’t have to see him ever again. I can finally get over him.’” 

“So?” 

“So. If that’s the case anyways, what’s sleeping with him gonna change? If anything the results could only be positive.” 

I stopped walking as we got outside the gates and faced Kuina. “I’m in love with Sanji. I want all of him. Not just a piece. Not just once.” 

I didn’t want to get frustrated with her. She was just saying what she thinks I wanted. “Besides,” I said. “It’s probably not true. He was probably just thinking out loud and Luffy took it too seriously.”

Kuina shrugged. “Maybe.” 

I put a hand on Kuina’s head. “Don’t worry. I’ll never have him. I’ve made my peace with that. If it is true, some other lucky soul can have it.” I turned, throwing a hand up. “Later.” 

“Wait, Zoro!” 

I chuckled. I should have known today would be no different. “Kuina.” 

“Just for tonight,” Kuina said. “It’s supposed to be freezing tonight. My place has plenty of room, so just--” 

“I don’t accept charity,” I said simply. The same thing I’d said to her every night for years. “I’ll be okay.” I looked back over my shoulder and smiled. “I always am.” 

“Can I at least give you your birthday present then?” 

I turned back towards her then. “Nice try. My birthday was a month ago.” 

“I know.” Kuina reached into her backpack and pulled out a colorfully wrapped box. “I had to save up for it.” She handed it over. “I was going to give it to you with a nice dinner and a cake, but since you’re so stubborn.” 

I looked it over. I didn’t accept charity from anyone. Plenty of people had tried to take pity on me in my lifetime, but if I went around accepting every little handout given to me, what kind of man would I be? I’d made it this far without anyone’s help, and once I graduated in a few months, I’d finally be an adult within reach of an actual life. I knew I could make it on my own. 

But a gift from a friend isn’t anything to turn one’s nose up at. 

“Thank you,” I said with a smile. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” 

Kuina smiled and then when I turned, she did too. I couldn’t move my smile as I walked away. For a guy who had very little, I had made some wonderful friends in my lifetime. I was incredibly lucky. 

I moved from memory down the path to the small restaurant where I often cleaned and did other menial tasks in exchange for a meager paycheck. Sometimes. A friend I’d unexpectedly made after he caught me squatting in his basement, Franky, set me up with the owner of the restaurant, his uncle Tom. At first, it was a steady paycheck and I was able to stay in a hotel for a few nights, but in no time at all the restaurant’s business started to drop and Tom’s ability to pay me got more and more sparse. Mostly it was bones thrown because Tom felt bad, but therein lied the problem. My and Franky’s involvement were really the only reasons the restaurant was continuing at all. I could have just left and hoped I could find something else, but if I left Tom and Franky never would have made it. My dying dedication to the people who’ve done anything for me is what has continuously sealed my fate. 

So I was waiting it out. When the business finally went bankrupt, I wouldn’t feel so bad leaving. However, when I turned the corner and started to walk across the street towards Tom’s restaurant, I saw an unfamiliar sight. There was a line leading out the door and around the corner. All the lights were on inside and there was a continuous murmur of voices. 

I ran across the street and made my way to the front of the line. There was a steady drone of insults hurled at me until I got to the front where Franky was standing. 

“Calm down!” he shouted. “He works here!” 

Franky was a good guy. He was older than me by five or six years, I wasn’t exactly sure how many because the self-proclaimed ‘Cyborg Franky’ maintained that he stopped aging at 18. He’d cheated death on more than one occasion and, honestly, he did sort of look like a cyborg. He had both a prosthetic leg and a prosthetic arm (and both on the right side) after having them both damaged beyond repair by his abusive parents, and after being in a car accident and having a portion of his skull shattered, it was replaced with a metal plate. Rolling with his ‘cyborg’ theme, he had a special monocle manufactured to look like a laser eye and had his free arm tattooed with gears. To complete his look he had electric blue hair that he kept gelled straight up on top of his head in an extravagant coiffure. 

“Zoro! It’s crazy man!” Franky squealed. 

“What happened?” I bellowed over the jeers of the crowd. 

Franky let out a joyous laugh. “We’ll explain everything tomorrow man. We have enough help to get through tonight, so take this for now.” Franky reached into his pocket and pulled out a stack of bills rubber banded together. He handed it to me with a bright smile on his face. “That’s not even all of it.” 

I, of course, didn’t take it. “I don’t take--” 

“It’s not charity, bud,” Franky cut in. “This is part of what you’ve earned working for us. All this money is yours.”

The way Franky looked at me through his one visible, green eye I could tell he was telling the truth. Part of me was completely okay with waiting to ask questions. I’d get to sleep in a proper bed tonight and I didn’t want to wait another second to get there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Zoro plans to spend his very first night in a comfortable bed with a roof over his head when he's interrupted by an unexpected guest.


	2. Fact or Fiction

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zoro decides to spend the night in a luxurious hotel, but bumps into a series of interesting people, including one unexpected intruder into his room.

I was certain I looked like an idiot standing in the middle of the posh, marble and onyx clad lobby of the five star hotel I’d chosen for the evening. I probably should have been more frugal in my choice, but after I got down to counting exactly how much money I’d gotten from Franky, combined with the fact that there was still more on the way and I now had a steady job, I figured I could afford one night in a more magnificent setting. Lord knows I deserve it. 

Still, it was plain to see against the tall chiseled pillars and ornate furniture, I was out of place. 

“Sir?” No doubt why this guy approached me after a few minutes of being awestruck. “I’m sorry, sir. There’s no loitering here. Our guests pay a lot of money for solitude and relaxation, so I’ll have to ask you to leave.” 

When I finally managed to drag my eyes to him, it took everything in my body not to burst out laughing. He was tall and slender and had a ridiculous looking afro jutting out. In his crisp, cream suit and imported black tie and shoes, he was a walking oxymoron. Like a clown at a funeral. 

I shook my head to dissipate the humor. “I’d like to get a room for the night.” 

The man chuckled. “You must be mistaken, young man. This isn’t some love hotel. We’re one of the most prestigious accommodations in Tokyo. We have a grocery store on our property. Now, please,” he gestured towards the door, “guests are starting to notice and I wouldn’t want to call the police.” 

I reached into my pocket and pulled out the wad of cash I’d gotten. “I think you’ll find this is more than enough to cover a room for tonight.” 

The attendant’s eyes widened. He shoved my hand down and took hold of my forearm. He dragged me through the lobby towards the reception desks in the back, pulling me towards an abandoned station near the end. “Are you insane?” 

“I just--” 

“Look, boy. Our guests aren’t royalty and celebrities. Every Yakuza and corrupt businessman for miles stays here, almost indefinitely. Did you do any research before you walked in here and started waving money around?” 

In fact, I had. I knew exactly how it would look for a high school student to walk into any upscale establishment with an entire year’s worth of wages in cash, looking to book a room for a single night. Of course I needed a place that wouldn’t ask questions. 

“I’m a highschool student with more money in hand than you earn in a year working here. I want to stay here for a single night and felt no fear in flashing my cash to you in front of all these people. You think I’m the world’s most upstanding citizen?”

The man sighed. “They’re starting so young these days.” 

“Look, I just need one day and I’m pretty tired so can you get me set up please?” 

“Brook!” 

Another, much more rotund man, came storming up to attendant that he called, ‘Brook.’ He looked over the counter and smiled at me. He was missing a few teeth, and even though he was going for the well dressed look, his chest hair stuck out in clumps over the top of his white button up, and the black hair on his head was matted and unruly. 

“Hello sir. Terribly sorry for my attendant’s manners. I’m Marshall Teach, the owner here. We’ll get you set up right away, in fact, we’ll put you in a penthouse for the week if you just pay three days rate for a standard,” he explained. 

I recoiled. “R-really?” 

Teach nodded. “Of course. An esteemed guest such as yourself should never have been met with such a rude reception. I’ll see to it that Brook is appropriately dealt with and in the meantime, let’s get you in that room.” 

I had no idea who this guy thought I was, but a penthouse for a week for just a few days’ standard room rate? Sold. I’d been planning on getting a deluxe suite for a night, so a few days standard would only cost a little extra. A whole week in a place with a comfortable bed, a luxurious shower and a view of the city. Those are things I simply never thought I’d have. 

“Brook.” Teach put a hand on Brook’s shoulder and squeezed. Brook winced and that’s when I realized what ‘appropriately dealt with’ probably meant. “Please get our guest set up in a room right away and see me in my office later.” 

“Uh.” I rubbed the back of my head. “Geez, Brook. Didn’t you tell this guy we knew each other?” 

Brook’s eyes widened and Teach’s narrowed. “You know each other?” Teach asked. 

I snickered. “Of course. This guy is like a cousin to me. He was just looking out for me. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure everyone knows I was treated with only respect.” 

Teach released his hold and relaxed in the process. “Oh, really? Thanks. Cause your friend saw Brook dragging you around and chewed my head right off.” 

My friend? 

I waved a hand and slid some cash onto the counter. I assumed, based on the rates I’d seen on the display outside, that it was enough for the standard rooms, and then some for Brook’s trouble. “Aw, don’t worry about her. She can be a little overprotective. I’ll talk to her.” 

Teach raised an eyebrow. “...of course. Well, thanks. Brook can you take care of this?”

“I’m on it, sir.” Brook smiled as Teach walked away and then let out a deep exhale once the man was far enough away. He reached across the counter and took my hands into his. “Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Marsh would have really run me in this time. You have no idea. I think you saved my life just now.” 

I shrugged. “Don’t worry about it. It’s true, you were just looking out for me.” 

“I had no idea you were friends with any of the guests. Why didn’t you say so?” Brook dropped my hands and went to work typing things into the computer in front of him. 

“Uh.” I rocked back and forth trying to think up the next part of my facade. I wasn’t the best at lying, so doing so continuously was really pressing my luck. “W-we like to keep our friendship a secret.” 

“Ohhh.” Brook winked at me. “So I’ll be sure to leave a penthouse key here at the desk for your special friend.” 

I probably should have protested. God only knows what manner of person Teach had spoken to and there was a 9/10 chance that that person was really just an assassin who wanted to kill me and steal my money. I had no one to blame but myself; I dug quite a hole. Maybe I’d get lucky and it’d be some really good looking guy. 

“Yes, please,” I said finally. “Only hand it over if they can give you my full name: Roronoa Zoro.” That was as much security as I was going to be able to apply. 

Brook nodded. “Can do, Mr. Roronoa.” 

“Zoro’s fine,” I responded. 

Finally, Brook handed a room key across the desk. “Okay. It’ll be up on the 16th floor. It’s a penthouse, so you’ll need your key to get off the elevator on that floor. It’ll open up right inside. In the elevator, hooks hang next to floors 15 through 20 where you can hang do-not-disturb placards if you wish not to be bothered. They’ll be sitting next to the TV in your living space. You have a month in Penthouse 16 starting today.” 

My jaw dropped. “A month?! But Teach said--” 

“Like I said,” Brook winked, “you saved my life.” 

I took the room key and nodded. “Thanks, man.” 

“No,” Brook responded. “Thank you.” He sighed as a sign of subject changing. “Apart from the overnight hours, I’m always here. So give me a buzz or come on down if you need something. I hope you enjoy your stay.”

* * *

I took a deep breath as I stepped out of the glass encased shower. It had been many years since I’d taken a nice, long shower in a place with piping hot water where I didn’t have to share it with dozens of other men. Tonight, I didn’t have to rush back to any class. I was going to walk out of my new steamy shower, plop down on my new down comforter, and the likelihood that I was actually going to school tomorrow was low. I was going to sleep all day and use my room’s provided computer and internet access to open my first bank account. Then I may actually look for a real place to live, after a few more hot showers and room service of course.

I turned the corner out of the bathroom and stared out at the beautiful Tokyo skyline against the night sky. I’d always hated Tokyo, but from up here, it was much nicer. I guess it just goes to show that the haves really do see something entirely different from the have nots. I walked down the small hallway and turned into the bedroom and went over to the closet. I’d hung up my school uniform, but was actually considering sending it to laundry the next day while I lazed around. That would, of course, leave me no clothes to wear around the penthouse, but who cared? It was my place for the month. If I wanted to let my dick hang out, I would do gladly. 

I dropped the towel from around my waist and dropped it in a laundry bag, then rubbed my head with the towel atop it a few times before dropping that one in as well. I shoved my uniform in the bag, tied it shut, and then tossed it down the provided laundry chute. The bag came pre-printed with all my room information, so hopefully, I’d get my uniform back. They were the only clothes I owned after all. 

With that done, I turned half-asleep already, and plopped down on the bed, face first. It was hard not to immediately fall asleep against the cloudy pillows, but all the lights were on and there was a light grumble in my stomach. So I flipped to my back and prepared to reach over to the phone to order room service, when my arm found another body instead. 

I turned my head, eyes closed and whispering a silent prayer, and when I felt I’d sufficiently prepared myself for any of what I might see I opened them. 

And in that moment it all became clear. 

Laying underneath the blanket, with only a head of blond hair sticking out from beneath it, was the man I was wildly in love with. 

The first real bed I’d ever had, and Vinsmoke Sanji was laying inside. 

So I was dreaming; it all made sense. 

Of course I didn’t show up to the place where I’ve worked for a year and a half and received all my unpaid wages in one sitting. Franky didn’t even offer an explanation. That’s how dreams work. Good stuff just happens with no logic applied. 

And of course I didn’t arrive to some luxurious hotel to stay for a single night and get offered a week’s stay in the penthouse by a cartoonish man and then have that week upped to a month by an even more cartoonish man. 

And of course I’m not laying mere inches away from Sanji, with him snoozing away happily as though he belonged there. 

I was dreaming and a hell of a dream it was. 

I reached over and slid the comforter away from Sanji’s body, his serene expression as he slept bleeding into me and making me feel infinitely more relaxed. He was no longer dressed in his school uniform, but instead a pair of tight-fitting blue jeans, and a maroon dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up. He looked like he’d just come in from a bar or nightclub (another sign it was a dream). 

My body was heating up exponentially as I stared at him. He really was deliriously beautiful, even more so up close. I wouldn't get another opportunity. Though my dreams had afforded me more than one opportunity to have my way with the gorgeous blond, it’d never felt so real before. I could feel the harsh tingling in my groin as I inched closer to him and his scent, something sweet like honey with a thick addition of nicotine, filled my nostrils and drove me wild. I reached my hand forward and brushed his hair aside and then, before I could talk myself out of it, I leaned in a dropped my lips to his. 

The remnants of a cigarette mixed with the salt of sweat met me. I moved even closer and sunk into the kiss. The passion I felt knew no bounds. I could destroy Sanji, and would if he’d let me, but I doubt my dream was going to give me that much. 

That’s when the most confusing thing yet happened. I was living in the kiss, breathing it, when there was a sharp pain against my skull. I pulled away from Sanji and threw my hand to my head. 

“Ow! What the fuck?” 

“Don’t ‘What the fuck’ me.” I opened my eyes and Sanji was sitting up in the bed, cheeks painted red and rubbing his mouth. “You were kissing me in my sleep, you pervert!” 

“It’s my dream, I can do what I want!” I responded without thinking. My head throbbed out a reality check. I rubbed the spot again and then it hit me like a ton of bricks. “Wait… Am I not dreaming?” 

“No, you moron!” Sanji barked. 

I scrambled out of the bed and looked down at him. “Then, what are you doing here? This is my room!” Sanji’s eyes widened and face turned an even deeper shade of red. “What?” Sanji reached behind himself, grabbed one of the pillows there and held it out to me. “I don't want that.” 

“No, um,” Sanji’s gaze kept flitting to me and then away. “You’re completely naked.” 

That I was. 

I snatched the pillow away from him and held it across my waist to cover, what I now realized, was a massive erection. 

“Don’t change the subject! Answer the question,” I growled. You’re the one sleeping in my bed. How’d you even get in here?” 

“Brook gave me your room key. He asked me if I was your special friend and if I knew your full name.” 

“Why were you even trying to get into my room?” 

“I was worried,” Sanji said. “All of a sudden, I look up and see you being dragged across the lobby with a bunch of cash in your hands. Any of those guys in there could have killed you in an instant.” 

A few too many questions occurred to me in that moment. For whatever reason, the only one I could muster was, “Why were you asleep in my bed?” 

“It’s a really comfortable bed,” Sanji replied simply as though that explanation made any sense. I mean, it did kind of. It was a really comfortable bed. But that didn’t explain why he would climb into it in the first place. 

I shook my head, still slightly unable to process everything. “I… What is going on?” 

Sanji cocked his head to the side. “You really are stupid aren’t you?”

“Hey!” I barked. “This isn’t a scenario that just makes sense to someone. For one thing, you saw me here. What are you doing here?” 

“My dad does most of his business here. Seeing as I’m taking over the company soon, he’s been dragging me along to his ‘meetings’ which are mostly just getting old men too drunk to make smart decisions and then taking them for all they’re worth.” 

That both explained Sanji’s presence in the hotel and his attire, but, “Why bother with me at all? What do you care about what I’m doing?”

Sanji shrugged. “It’d be troublesome for me if you stumbled off on some shady path, so just be a good boy and stop doing whatever you’re doing.” 

Hearing Sanji order me around sent a jolt straight downward and did nothing to better the hardness I was desperately trying to do away with, but I shook that thought away. “Why would it be troublesome for you?” Sanji didn’t reply. Instead he stared pensively forward as though he was focusing all his attention on solving a puzzle I couldn’t see. I sighed and then sat on the edge of the bed with my back to Sanji. The only hope I had of getting my erection to go down involved not be looking at him. “I’m not doing anything bad.” 

“What?” Sanji sounded off behind me and he sounded closer than I thought he was. 

“I work at this restaurant near school. I clean and bus tables mostly. That guy’s business started going way downhill after I started working there, so he started paying me less and less until eventually he stopped.” 

“Hmm,” Sanji responded. “Why would you continue working for some guy who wasn’t paying you? What’s the point?” 

“He helped me when I needed it most,” I said. “He and his nephew had been wonderful to me, so I couldn’t bring myself to just drop him because he couldn’t pay me anymore.” 

“Huh,” Sanji huffed. 

“What?” I responded. 

“Nothing,” Sanji said. “I guess I’m just not used to decisions that aren’t entirely dictated by money. Must be nice.” 

I looked over my shoulder and Sanji had settled his head against his pulled up knees. For the first time in the entire time I’d known Sanji, he looked genuinely sad. I turned away. I didn’t like Sanji’s sad face. I only wanted to see him happy. 

“At least having problems dictated by money means that you have money.” My head slumped after that. “Must be nice.” 

We sat in a thick and awkward silence for a long time, likely not improved by the fact that I was still sitting there naked, but it wasn’t like I could solve that problem either. 

“So,” Sanji said after a long time. “Don’t your parents have a problem with you staying in a hotel in the Yakuza district?”

Things were awkward enough. I didn’t need to increase the intensity with my sad story. “I told them I was staying at a friend’s house.” 

“Is that so?” Sanji responded. 

“What about you?” I asked. 

“Huh?” 

“You’re also out this late. Aren’t your parents concerned?” For half a second I thought I was dreaming again when I felt a light touch on my back. I looked back over my shoulder again and Sanji was craned forward with one of his soft hands idling against my bare skin. “Um.” 

“Sorry,” Sanji said, though not removing his hand. “I was just thinking you’re oddly fit.” 

“Why oddly?” I asked. 

“I don’t know. Don’t the outcasts usually have poor bodies and are weak?” Sanji asked. 

“I mean, I always put extra work in during P.E. and my job can be good exercise.” Sanji’s hand continued to trail its way across my back, over my shoulder blades, and down my spine. Every place they touched burn and soon that fire spread to my heart. I wanted Sanji more than I wanted anything. “Please stop.” 

“Why?” Sanji asked in a dark, somewhat frightening voice. “You don’t like it?” 

I closed my eyes and attempted to sear the feeling into my brain. “That’s irrelevant.” 

“You want me, don’t you?” Sanji asked. “You kissed me earlier and back then you confessed to me.” 

“Again,” I huffed back, feeling the erection I’d only just gotten to subside, rising again, “that’s irrelevant.” 

“How do you figure?” Sanji answered in a sultry, sharp voice. 

I stood up again, taking my pillow shield with me, and moved to the corner of the room. “You should go.” 

Sanji’s eyebrows hunched. “I know you heard.” He stood up. “I specifically told Luffy so that you would hear.” 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I replied and it took everything to hide my annoyance that I was going to have to tell damn Kuina that she was right. 

“You do.” Sanji took a couple steps towards me. His eyes were dark and blown now; nothing but pure lust inside. 

“I don’t,” I responded. Why did I have to throw all my clothes down the laundry chute? Why did Sanji look so infinitely devourable? What was with my sudden turn of luck? 

“You mean you didn’t hear that I’m looking for a fuck buddy? A _male_ fuck buddy?” Sanji said as he continued to close the gap. 

Beads of sweat were pooling around my brow now. I was definitely going to need another shower. “I may have--” 

“I’m not gay, but I think I could do it with a guy. If it was you,” he growled. 

Though I desperately wanted to know what about me specifically gave him that notion, but my self-control was fading fast. Not to mention… 

…I was getting incredibly angry. 

“I don’t know what you think I am,” I began with a hiss, “but I’m not some whore for you to use to stifle your frustrations.” Sanji’s eyes widened as mine pierced. “You could have picked any guy, but you picked me because you thought I’d be an easy target. Go for the outcast who confessed to you and he’s sure to do what you want?” 

“No, I--” 

“I bore all of myself to you in that moment and the only thing you said was ‘gross.’” 

“Yeah, but tha--” 

“I’m going to make one thing very clear to you Prince Vinsmoke.” Sanji’s hands balled into fists and cheeks and ears turned red. “Anyone who tries to take advantage of me, I’ll never forgive them.” I gave him one final, stabbing look. “Now get out.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Zoro finally opens his present from Kuina and it comes in handy when he decides to skip a day of school


End file.
